Christ-follower, husband, father, pastor and coffee snob

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God vs. Man

Proverbs 29:25 says “Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is kept safe.”

Brings up an interesting question, doesn’t it? Who do we fear more ~ God or man? Who’s opinion do we care about more~ God’s or man’s? Who do we try to please more~ God or man? Who’s direction do we follow more~ God’s or man’s?

I can’t help but think (and confess) that I fall into the trap of trying to please people in my life more than God. It is almost like I am more afraid of their judgment of me more than God’s. Maybe it is because man’s judgment of us is more immediate in some ways. Maybe it is because we choose to give people in our lives more power than they should have so we feel the need to listen to them and consider seriously what they say. Sometimes we are afraid of letting people down. Sometimes we consider their experience and knowledge more valuable than God’s.

But Proverbs tells us that it is not wise to rely on (or fear) man over God. People in this life may want the best for us but they do not see the whole picture ~ God does. People in this life may think they are wise, but that wisdom is foolishness compared to God. People in this life have their agendas but God’s plan is perfect. Some people in this life want to have power over us but God is the one in control.

I am not saying that we ignore people in our lives. God does work through people in this world to accomplish His purposes. The issue at hand is this: Who do we fear more? Basically…when a major decision is upon us we need to seek out God first and try to determine what GOD wants us to do. Maybe that is through other people, but in the end, the fear of God is what leads to wisdom. The fear of man is nothing more than a snare.

[I just love it when God is this timely with what I am reading in scripture 🙂 God is indeed faithful.]